9 Facts About Bitcoin You Probably Didn't Know

When Bitcoin first came out in 2009, 1 coin was worth basically nothing. But as of early November 2020, 1 bitcoin is worth over $15,000! And what's even more astonishing is that's not the highest value it's ever held either.

It's clear that this cryptocurrency has taken the world by storm. And it's here to stay as well.

You might want to get in on this action, but you should probably first learn a little more about this cryptocurrency.

Here are 9 other facts about Bitcoin you probably didn't know.

1. The Concept Was Born in the 1980s

While Bitcoin didn't come into existence until 2009, someone thought up the concept of cryptocurrency decades before that.

David Chaum, an IT specialist, wanted to create an electronic payment system where nothing would be detectable. He first published this concept in a scientific journal in 1983.

Chaum then created the first digital cash (or e-cash) under his company DigiCash, which was founded in 1989.

2. The Creator of Bitcoin Is Kind of Unknown

We say "kind of" because there is a name associated with the creation of Bitcoin: Satoshi Nakamoto.

However, no one's really sure exactly who this is, or if it even is an individual! There's some speculation that "Satoshi Nakamoto" can be anything from one person to a group of people, to a company or even a government organization!

In any case, you have this entity to thank for the creation of this amazing cryptocurrency.

3. You Need to Be Particular About Spelling

This might be getting nitpicky, but really do need to be particular about spelling when it comes to this cryptocurrency.

For one thing, you only capitalize "Bitcoin" when you're talking about the protocol or system. If you're talking about how much currency you have, then the word is not capitalized. So you can have 1 bitcoin, not 1 Bitcoin.

Also, you always use the term "bitcoin" when speaking about currency. So whether you have 1 or 5, it's always just "bitcoin," not "bitcoins."

4. Bitcoin Is Purely Digital

Bitcoin is a purely digital form of currency that exists on blockchain networks. This is the reason that it's a truly decentralized type of currency, unlike fiat currency.

If you receive offers for bitcoin in physical form, then take them as red flags. Again, Bitcoin is a completely digital type of currency.

Do note that you can keep your bitcoin in physical "wallets," which are also called hardware wallets. This keeps your bitcoin safe from hackers since they can't access your crypto unless they actually have your hardware wallet and passwords.

5. The First Transaction Was for 2 Pizzas

You might think we're kidding here, but we're not!

Back in 2010, in the early days of Bitcoin, developer Laszlo Hanyecz gave a friend 10,000 bitcoin in exchange for buying 2 pizzas for him with a credit card. And no, you didn't read that number wrong; that is indeed 4 zeros!

Of course, 1 bitcoin didn't hold nearly as much value as it does today. Nowadays, that'd be tens of millions of dollars!

6. January 3, 2009, Is an Important Date

If you're into Bitcoin, then you might've noticed a lot of people with this date in their profiles or usernames. This is because January 3, 2009 is the day the first Bitcoin block (or Genesis Block) was mined.

Essentially, this is the exact date that Bitcoin went live! As you can see, this is a day that forever changed history.

7. There's a Finite Amount of Bitcoin

As you've seen in the above section, Bitcoin came to life when the Genesis Block was mined. Basically, bitcoin isn't "generated," but rather, "retrieved."

What this means is that there isn't an infinite amount of bitcoin blocks being generated. Instead, there are only so many blocks that bitcoin miners can "unlock." After they've gone through them all, then there will be no more bitcoin.

Currently, there's only an allowance for 21 million bitcoin in the world. However, there's always the possibility that the protocol will be changed and more bitcoin will come into the market.

Considering over 18.5 million bitcoin have already been mined, this might come as good news to those who are late to the game.

8. Around a Quarter of Bitcoin Is Gone Forever

Not only is there a finite amount of Bitcoin, but unfortunately, around 25% of it is gone forever.

We mentioned that you can store bitcoin on hardware wallets, but before that, bitcoin is stored in digital wallets. These wallets require intricate keys that only the owner knows.

Many people bought bitcoin at its early stages and then forgot about their crypto because nothing really happened with it for a little bit.

Now, years after, people have either completely forgotten they have this cryptocurrency or can't remember and/or find their private keys. As a result, these bitcoin are lost forever, as there's no way to retrieve these keys.

9. Many online casinos Accept This Cryptocurrency

What's incredible about the popularity of Bitcoin is that it's so widely accepted nowadays that even online casinos accept it, as well as many other cryptocurrencies.

This means that if you want to gamble online in pure anonymity, it's entirely possible at these crypto casinos. In fact, many of them don't even require you to register with them, which means you'll get to truly gamble as an anonymous entity on their sites!

Now You Know All About Bitcoin

After reading this article, you now know a bunch of new facts about Bitcoin. While most are just some fun facts, others will help you make wiser decisions should you decide to invest some money into this cryptocurrency.

So remember the Bitcoin facts we've given you here. You never know just when they'll come in handy!

Do you want to gamble online with Bitcoin? Then check out our list of cryptocurrency casinos now!